I have addressed the topic of resistance training, and heavy resistance training at that, as my favorite form of fat loss. I still get emails and comments from woman who are scared to lift heavy because they are going to get all bulky like guys. I hope this video will convince a few more skeptics that it just isn’t the case. Once you shed the fat away from the body you are left with, small, lean, and toned muscles.
If you were impressed with what Sarah was able to do and want to begin to build your strength up, my Fit Moms For Life DVDs do just that! Workout with moms just like Sarah as they sweat and work hard towards their way to a very fit, and toned body! To encourage you to start, I am giving my first months CD and DVD away for FREE, just pay shipping. http://www.fitmomsforlife.com/thankyou.html Join the nearly 1000 moms who have taken the challenge!
Question: For those of you who have been following my advice and lifting heavy, please share with me how it has worked out? Do you feel differently? What are the benefits?
Awhile ago I asked everyone to share with me 3 questions you have about how to lose weight. I got a lot of great responses and I apologize for just now getting back to answering some of them. Every once in awhile, I will pick a couple of these questions and give my opinion. Check out the previous post about questions and feel free to add your own questions for me to answer
#1 is from Rebekah: One thing that would be interesting to know is if you stop working out, how long (or how little) does it take to lose muscle? I’ve heard that it takes as little as a month for your body to revert and to be back at square one, so to speak.
Rebekah, it is true that if you stop working out for awhile you will begin to lose muscle and could put on fat depending on your nutrition. A one week break won’t be a big deal, and in fact, I encourage you to take a week off of lifting every 3-4 months. This can help heal any small injuries you might have and allow your body to recharge and get refocused. From a cardio standpoint you will notice a decrease after a week, things might be a little tougher and you will be out of breath for a bit. It takes a couple weeks to a month of not working out to really see the muscle start to decrease. It depends on how long you have been working out, to go back to square one. It would take longer then 1 month to revert back to before assuming you have been working out for more then 6 months.
This is why it is so important to make working out a lifestyle rather then a short term fix. The good news is something called “muscle memory” which means that your muscles are able to get stronger, quicker if they had been there before. I am amazed at how fast muscle and strength increases on someone who has been fit before and just slacked off for awhile. More on Answers To “How To Lose Weight”
The story I am about to share with you is an all too common story. It is a client who came to me because she was frustrated that her body was holding on to so much fat, despite the fact that she was doing endless amounts of cardio and trying to eat healthy. After sitting down with her and analyzing her exercise and eating habits, it became clear that she was eating away her muscle with her endless cardio and very low calorie diets. My recommendations to her was to consume much more lean protein and stop all long distance cardio and instead weight train 3X per week for 45 minutes, do 20 minutes of high intensity cardio 2X per week, and eat more lean protein and supplement with protein drinks.
She took my advice and in the past year has completely transformed her body. One of the things that set her apart, was her work ethic and intensity in the gym. She wasn’t afraid to work hard, sweat, and even let out some soft grunts. At one point she told me to make her puke, so I did… TWICE! When she started to workout she wasn’t able to even do one pushup! How things can change in only a year!
Here is her story in her own words!
Abby Before
“Everyone has heard of the “Freshman 15;” well, I apparently decided to take it a step further and experienced something closer to the “Freshmen 20!” But I didn’t stop there, over the next few years, I continued to gain more weight. Even after college, the weight continued to pile on, reaching an all-time high for me of 149lbs. During this time, I was quite the “Cardio Queen.” I would spend from 1.5 to 2 hours/day, 3-4 days/week doing any variety of cardio (treadmill, bike, elliptical, stair climber). This wasn’t exactly high-intensity cardio, either (obviously, I would not be able to keep that up for 1.5-2 hours!). Despite my numerous hours at the gym, engaged in my Cardio Queen activities, I couldn’t lose any weight…and more specifically, couldn’t lose any fat!
After years of frustration and low self-esteem, I signed up for Dustin’s Core Class. I always thought I had a strong core, after all I could do countless crunches! Boy, was I wrong! Dustin’s class taught me how weak I really was…core and all. After a month of Core Class, I noticed my body was getting stronger, but I wanted to kick it up a notch. I signed up for small group personal training. Before my first session with Dustin, he took my body fat, which surprised me at 25%. I was shocked at how high it was, and I couldn’t help but wonder what it was before I started Core Class! More on Amazing Fat Loss Transformation: Cardio Queen Sees Light of Day!
